Mendel Money Management Takes $217,000 Position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT)

Mendel Money Management acquired a new position in Walmart Inc. (NYSE:WMT) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 2,397 shares of the retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $217,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Walmart by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 422,736,888 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $38,194,278,000 after purchasing an additional 2,050,683 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Walmart by 3.3% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 87,617,409 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $7,048,465,000 after buying an additional 2,786,061 shares during the period. FMR LLC increased its stake in shares of Walmart by 12.9% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 63,135,639 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $5,098,203,000 after acquiring an additional 7,200,004 shares during the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in Walmart by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 48,793,045 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $4,408,452,000 after acquiring an additional 1,133,201 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in Walmart by 3.7% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 41,501,782 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $3,392,658,000 after purchasing an additional 1,480,927 shares in the last quarter. 26.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently commented on the stock. Citigroup restated a “positive” rating on shares of Walmart in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price objective on Walmart from $99.00 to $93.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 20th. Tigress Financial increased their target price on Walmart from $86.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Truist Financial lifted their price target on shares of Walmart from $98.00 to $111.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price objective on shares of Walmart from $109.00 to $107.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $103.17.

Walmart Stock Down 3.2 %

WMT stock opened at $84.69 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $678.95 billion, a PE ratio of 35.14, a P/E/G ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.53. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $95.00 and its 200-day moving average is $89.25. Walmart Inc. has a twelve month low of $58.56 and a twelve month high of $105.30. The company has a quick ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The retailer reported $0.66 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.64 by $0.02. Walmart had a return on equity of 21.87% and a net margin of 2.85%. The firm had revenue of $180.55 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $178.83 billion. Sell-side analysts expect that Walmart Inc. will post 2.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Walmart Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 5th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 12th will be given a dividend of $0.235 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 12th. This represents a $0.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.11%. Walmart’s dividend payout ratio is presently 39.00%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO C Douglas Mcmillon sold 29,124 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.35, for a total transaction of $2,689,601.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 3,785,702 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $349,609,579.70. The trade was a 0.76 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Kathryn J. Mclay sold 4,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.95, for a total transaction of $343,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 888,309 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $76,350,158.55. The trade was a 0.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 189,777 shares of company stock valued at $18,001,116 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock.

About Walmart

Walmart Inc engages in the operation of retail, wholesale, other units, and eCommerce worldwide. The company operates through three segments: Walmart U.S., Walmart International, and Sam's Club. It operates supercenters, supermarkets, hypermarkets, warehouse clubs, cash and carry stores, and discount stores under Walmart and Walmart Neighborhood Market brands; membership-only warehouse clubs; ecommerce websites, such as walmart.com.mx, walmart.ca, flipkart.com, PhonePe and other sites; and mobile commerce applications.